Thunderbird Club

[JIO]

@JIO where am I?

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Chabot College recording studio/classroom? What's up with that?

 

[JIO]

Dolly!

RIP and long live Dolly - one of the greatest singers/songwriters/personalities/humanitarians -

 

[Stealth57]

Chabot College recording studio/classroom? What's up with that?

Taking a recording technology class.

 

[JIO]

Still a thing on Tuesdays?
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[Count Bassie]

Took my Bird to band rehearsal & some notes:

- It sounds good, it's got a solid thunder sound, with the added snap of the maple body (how much is contributing, is anyone's guess)
- It works for certain songs. Some of the heavier, "slower" numbers we do, it sits perfect. When it comes to the faster punkier stuff, it's not the best to downpick constantly.
- I will say this, it's as heavy as it looks. & while i don't mind the weight persay, it does drain a lot on my back & shoulders atm. & while it does sound good, the maple body definitely took away from the "low mid" growl i originally had with the "mahogany" epiphone body.

So this leaves me with, potentially, making a new new body again for this goth neck. I'd love to find a wood that's got the same "tone" as mahogany, with the light colour of Maple (uniformity for the artwork). If at all possible. Or if there're ways to lighten the darker mahogany colour prior to finishing. & if i still want to keep the oversize of it, i'll do much less than i have with this one - so it could fit a hardcase/gig bag when needed.

& what would this mean for the current Maple body i've got? 2 options: Either turn it into a FenderBird ala Entwistle, OR, i make it a pseudo RD standard. Either way, i'd use some other Bird Pickups, & possibly still find a dark fretboard neck.

If any of y'all have suggestions for "tonewoods" that would match my above thought, or any other options altogether instead of mahogany i should look into, i'm all for it.

EDIT: I know other Epi Bolt on Birds are Alder bodied, can anyone actually tell the difference between one of those & the Mahogany bodied?

I've got a P-bass with a White Maple body, and it's super light. Hadn't heard of a lightweight Maple before this bass, but it's great for long gigs.

 

[JIO]

Taking a recording technology class.

That recording studio is top notch! Our (TSC) soon to be in my hands Eponymous 2 recording/CD has 4 songs that were recorded there 3 years ago. It's a state of the art facility. (upgraded during Covid) Our drummer Phil Galante knew the dept. head (I forget his name) and got us in. Our SF recording guy Robert Preston mastered what we did there and the result was 100% - have a great learning experience there Dave! Everyone was so nice and respectful. We had a totally positive experience at Chabot.

 

[JIO]

Took my Bird to band rehearsal & some notes:

- It sounds good, it's got a solid thunder sound, with the added snap of the maple body (how much is contributing, is anyone's guess)
- It works for certain songs. Some of the heavier, "slower" numbers we do, it sits perfect. When it comes to the faster punkier stuff, it's not the best to downpick constantly.
- I will say this, it's as heavy as it looks. & while i don't mind the weight persay, it does drain a lot on my back & shoulders atm. & while it does sound good, the maple body definitely took away from the "low mid" growl i originally had with the "mahogany" epiphone body.

So this leaves me with, potentially, making a new new body again for this goth neck. I'd love to find a wood that's got the same "tone" as mahogany, with the light colour of Maple (uniformity for the artwork). If at all possible. Or if there're ways to lighten the darker mahogany colour prior to finishing. & if i still want to keep the oversize of it, i'll do much less than i have with this one - so it could fit a hardcase/gig bag when needed.

& what would this mean for the current Maple body i've got? 2 options: Either turn it into a FenderBird ala Entwistle, OR, i make it a pseudo RD standard. Either way, i'd use some other Bird Pickups, & possibly still find a dark fretboard neck.

If any of y'all have suggestions for "tonewoods" that would match my above thought, or any other options altogether instead of mahogany i should look into, i'm all for it.

EDIT: I know other Epi Bolt on Birds are Alder bodied, can anyone actually tell the difference between one of those & the Mahogany bodied?

The concept of what is the best "tone wood" is flexible... I strive to make light-weight basses that sound good and it's actually not that difficult. Get everything in-line and the body wood will conform. Torrified/roasted bodies of ash, maple or alder are light and sound great - but I've found basswood, poplar and other off mainstream woods to be good to work with, light and great sounding. Ask weight questions to the seller about the weight of the blank, make it thin (I go for 1-1/4") and make sure it balances due to correct design and not body weight to compensate for neck-dive.